Lithia Motors (NYSE:LAD) Trading 7.1% Higher After Better-Than-Expected Earnings

Lithia Motors, Inc. (NYSE:LAD) shot up 7.1% on Wednesday after the company announced better than expected quarterly earnings. The company traded as high as $303.13 and last traded at $296.8520. 48,570 shares changed hands during trading, a decline of 84% from the average session volume of 313,220 shares. The stock had previously closed at $277.24.

The company reported $7.34 earnings per share for the quarter, topping analysts’ consensus estimates of $7.06 by $0.28. The company had revenue of $9.27 billion for the quarter, compared to analysts’ expectations of $9.22 billion. Lithia Motors had a net margin of 1.88% and a return on equity of 12.49%. The business’s quarterly revenue was up 1.0% compared to the same quarter last year. During the same period last year, the firm posted $7.66 earnings per share.

Lithia Motors Increases Dividend

The business also recently disclosed a quarterly dividend, which will be paid on Friday, May 22nd. Investors of record on Friday, May 8th will be given a $0.57 dividend. The ex-dividend date of this dividend is Friday, May 8th. This represents a $2.28 annualized dividend and a yield of 0.8%. This is an increase from Lithia Motors’s previous quarterly dividend of $0.55. Lithia Motors’s payout ratio is presently 6.85%.

Analyst Upgrades and Downgrades

A number of analysts recently issued reports on LAD shares. Wells Fargo & Company lifted their target price on Lithia Motors from $293.00 to $305.00 and gave the company an “equal weight” rating in a research report on Thursday. Weiss Ratings reaffirmed a “hold (c+)” rating on shares of Lithia Motors in a research report on Thursday, January 22nd. Wall Street Zen downgraded Lithia Motors from a “hold” rating to a “sell” rating in a research report on Saturday, February 28th. Barclays lowered their target price on Lithia Motors from $380.00 to $370.00 and set an “overweight” rating on the stock in a research report on Tuesday, April 7th. Finally, Zacks Research raised Lithia Motors from a “strong sell” rating to a “hold” rating in a research report on Thursday, April 23rd. Six analysts have rated the stock with a Buy rating and six have given a Hold rating to the company. Based on data from MarketBeat.com, Lithia Motors currently has a consensus rating of “Moderate Buy” and an average target price of $362.33.

Institutional Inflows and Outflows

A number of institutional investors and hedge funds have recently made changes to their positions in the business. Parallel Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Lithia Motors by 26.8% in the fourth quarter. Parallel Advisors LLC now owns 156 shares of the company’s stock worth $52,000 after purchasing an additional 33 shares during the period. AGP Franklin LLC grew its holdings in Lithia Motors by 0.3% in the third quarter. AGP Franklin LLC now owns 10,459 shares of the company’s stock worth $3,305,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the period. Arizona State Retirement System grew its holdings in Lithia Motors by 0.4% in the third quarter. Arizona State Retirement System now owns 7,702 shares of the company’s stock worth $2,434,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the period. GAMMA Investing LLC grew its holdings in Lithia Motors by 9.2% in the fourth quarter. GAMMA Investing LLC now owns 403 shares of the company’s stock worth $134,000 after purchasing an additional 34 shares during the period. Finally, Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC grew its holdings in Lithia Motors by 3.8% in the first quarter. Fifth Third Wealth Advisors LLC now owns 984 shares of the company’s stock worth $246,000 after purchasing an additional 36 shares during the period.

Lithia Motors Price Performance

The company has a debt-to-equity ratio of 1.41, a current ratio of 0.99 and a quick ratio of 0.26. The firm has a market capitalization of $6.79 billion, a price-to-earnings ratio of 10.19, a PEG ratio of 0.70 and a beta of 1.22. The business’s fifty day simple moving average is $267.16 and its 200 day simple moving average is $302.67.

Lithia Motors Company Profile

Lithia Motors, Inc is an American automotive retailer headquartered in Medford, Oregon. Founded in 1946 as a small auto body and glass shop, the company has grown through organic expansion and strategic acquisitions to become one of the largest automotive retail networks in North America. Lithia operates dealerships across the United States and Canada, offering a broad portfolio of new and pre-owned vehicles from more than 40 different manufacturers.

The company’s core business activities include vehicle sales, financing, insurance, parts and service.